23.03.2020

Nors acquires Stongco

Portuguese equipment distribution group Nors has acquired Canadian crane and equipment distributor Strongco.

Nors is one of Volvo’s largest distributors, while Strongco represents Volvo Construction from 22 of its 26 locations across Canada, including Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The company has around 500 employees and also represents Manitowoc Cranes, including Grove and National Crane, as well as Jekko spider and mini crawler cranes, Fassi loader cranes and Konecranes marine lifting equipment.

Nors has promoted Oliver Nachevski to the post chief executive Strongco, he was previously chief operating officer. He joined Strongco in 1996 and has worked in several roles in the company, including finance and credit to crane operations and vice president of construction equipment. He is a qualified accountant and became chief operating officer in 2018.

Nors chief executive Tomás Jervell said: “We believe that Strongco will benefit from Nors’ global presence and brand recognition, and from its long experience in the automotive and construction equipment industry to further enhance its superior performance and future growth. And we are very much looking forward to working with Volvo CE across Canada. We plan on investing heavily in staff expertise, as well as improving parts availability. The goal is to provide the highest uptime in the industry to Volvo CE customers, and we are ready to achieve it.”

“We are excited for Oliver to take on the responsibilities of president and CEO of Strongco. He was a key member of the management team that strengthened the company’s financial health, and we believe his leadership represents a positive direction for Strongco and Nors as a whole.”

Nachevski added: “I want to thank all of our employees for their continued commitment and loyalty. Their tireless effort is the reason we were able to forge an alliance with a global powerhouse such as Nors. As we seek to enhance our product and service offering from coast to coast, it will be an honour to lead Strongco into the next phase of our growth as a part of the Nors family.”

Family owned Nors was founded in 1933 by Luís Óscar Jervell, the grandfather of the current chief executive. It began as a partner of Volvo in Portugal, selling and servicing trucks and buses, before it began selling Volvo Construction Equipment products in 1970. In the 1990s it began expanding internationally into Africa and then North and South America. Today it sells, rents and services construction, mining and forestry equipment, along with trucks, buses, cars and marine and industrial engines across 16 countries in four continents, including: Portugal, Spain, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Croatia, Turkey, Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, Mexico and the USA. With 3,600 employees and a revenues last year of €1.6 billion.